Singers and their problems with remembering Lyrics

[spectorbass83]

My singer has got to be the worst for remembering lyrics. He can't even remember lyrics to OUR songs! Lyrics that HE wrote!
Does that sound a little ridiculous or what?

Every time we are on stage he brings lyrics sheets with him and sets them at his feet or rests them against his stage monitor...Their lyrics to your own songs! You wrote the lyrics, how long will it take for you to remember them!?!?

I honestly want him to break this habit because it looks so un-professional and so amateur. Like in between songs, he would be flipping pages looking for the lyrics to the next song... By the end of our set there are a bunch of papers all around the stage with lyrics on them. This irritates me like you would not believe!

I don't want the same thing to happen when we have to play a big show and we are opening for a big name band. What if there are record execs at one of our future shows and they see that our singer is lost without his precious lyrics sheet?!

Put yourself in my shoes...What would you do?

[spudmaster34]

Some people (like me) have problems remembering things. If I were you, I would apreciate that he recignizes he has a problem and came up with a decent solution. Many of us have seen singers forget their lyrics, as well as instrumentalists forget their parts, and those that have played with a "forgeter" probably wish that person could have swallowed their pride and been like your singer.

[WalterBush]

If I were in your shoes, I'd point out to a recording executive that Guns n' Roses, Page and Plant, Ozzy Osbourne, and most large bands have teleprompter setups to remind the singers of the vast quantities of lyrics they're supposed to sing, and ask if your band could be included in such a setup.

Or I'd point out that plenty of backing bands for major artists have music stands with sheet music onstage so they don't forget chord changes.

Seriously, most singers forget lyrics, whether they wrote them or not. There's plenty of precedent for what your singer is doing. It's nowhere near as irritating as a singer who consistently doesn't remember their lyrics without a cheat-sheet and forgets entire verses.

[guy n. cognito]

It has been my experience that most singers don't EVER practice outside of organized band rehersals. That would make it difficult to remember the words.

[spectorbass83]

Originally Posted by guy n. cognito

It has been my experience that most singers don't EVER practice outside of organized band rehersals. That would make it difficult to remember the words.

Exactly!

I actully just talked to my singer about this entire issue and he says he does not practice at home..

Do you guys think I was out of line at all? I follow the local band scene here in my city and I can assure you that I have not seen one band with a singer that brings a load of paper on stage with him that has lyrics on it. It honestly just kinda seemed like it was amateur to me.

[WalterBush]

Originally Posted by spectorbass83

Exactly!
Do you guys think I was out of line at all? I follow the local band scene here in my city and I can assure you that I have not seen one band with a singer that brings a load of paper on stage with him that has lyrics on it. It honestly just kinda seemed like it was amateur to me.

Would you have noticed if a singer in a different band botched the lyrics?


Ideally, singers are always 100% on, but for many, concentrating on note, tone, and lyrics can cause an occasional mistake to occur. Some would rather be seen with sheet music than allow this to happen. Get your guy to stop using sheet music for a few rehearsals. See how much he screws up without.

Maybe he doesn't really need it if he practiced more, but if Donald Fagen has sheet music in front of him onstage for songs he wrote with Steely Dan, I don't see how it can be considered unproffesional. I don't see any local bands using in-ear monitors or wireless systems regularly, either, but I assure that doesn't make their use amateurish.

[spectorbass83]

Originally Posted by jabberwock777

Would you have noticed if a singer in a different band botched the lyrics?


Ideally, singers are always 100% on, but for many, concentrating on note, tone, and lyrics can cause an occasional mistake to occur. Some would rather be seen with sheet music than allow this to happen. Get your guy to stop using sheet music for a few rehearsals. See how much he screws up without.

Maybe he doesn't really need it if he practiced more, but if Donald Fagen has sheet music in front of him onstage for songs he wrote with Steely Dan, I don't see how it can be considered unproffesional. I don't see any local bands using in-ear monitors or wireless systems regularly, either, but I assure that doesn't make their use amateurish.

i think that is what we will try - stop using sheet music for a few rehearsals. See how much he screws up without it.

[Kickin'Fruit]

Originally Posted by jabberwock777

Would you have noticed if a singer in a different band botched the lyrics?


Ideally, singers are always 100% on, but for many, concentrating on note, tone, and lyrics can cause an occasional mistake to occur. Some would rather be seen with sheet music than allow this to happen. Get your guy to stop using sheet music for a few rehearsals. See how much he screws up without.

Maybe he doesn't really need it if he practiced more, but if Donald Fagen has sheet music in front of him onstage for songs he wrote with Steely Dan, I don't see how it can be considered unproffesional. I don't see any local bands using in-ear monitors or wireless systems regularly, either, but I assure that doesn't make their use amateurish.

Went to a Pearl Jam concert in Albany recently... Vedder switched the verses (accidentally I'm sure) when he sang Gone. Instead of first singing "The lights of the city only look good when I'm speeding..." he sang the second chorus/verse "the lights of the city have lost all feeling..." The point I want to make though is that he wrote the song, he didn't affect the performance, the context of the song, the feeling he was trying to eminate. He wrote the song, I believe he has every right to sing it anyway he wants, screw it up however. "If it sounds good, it IS good." Tell your singer that and maybe he'll get rid of his "cue card crutches" and he'll remember the songs better if he is at risk of choking. But his right to sing a song different will be a bit of a saftey net.

[beyondhairy]

at least this didnt happen to your singer...

OUCH!

lol

[Matthew Bryson]

Originally Posted by Kickin'Fruit

Went to a Pearl Jam concert in Albany recently... Vedder switched the verses (accidentally I'm sure)...

Pfft... That's nothin new for him. I swear I've never heard Ed sing Yellow Led Better the same way twice...

[Dincrest]

I've seen singers who sing for multiple bands keep a lyre with flip-folder that can be clamped to a mic stand. I see nothing wrong with that. Better he sings it right than be like "uhhhh....." and get all mushmouthed. Plus, having a lyre and flip folder makes things look tidier than a messy, disorganized shuffle of papers.

I know plenty of bassists who keep a "cheat sheet" of chord progression charts of songs in a little binder on their amp that they consult between songs.

I think that's professional in that it shows that s/he wants to play the stuff right.

[Matthew Bryson]

Originally Posted by beyondhairy

at least this didnt happen to your singer...

OUCH!

lol

The title of the video is MJKeenen Screws Up - I'd have to say that the guy screwed up the moment he stepped out on stage in a speedo

[jady]

I am pretty unsympathetic for singers forgeting thier words. We have 2 singers in our band one is pretty on with remembering her lyrics but the other is constantly forgetting.

Singers have such a complex about being considered equal musicians with the instrumentalists but then when thier voice is tired they feel they need special treatment (I can't sing that song now, etc) or crying about how much harder it is to sing than play anything else.

I play every song, begining to end, with no guitar solos to rest in, no instrumental breaks to rest on, etc.

bassists and drummers are playing 99% of the time the band is playing but if we ever tried to change a song in the set list order to help our chops, its like we asked to move mountains.

To all singers, suck it up!!! You chose to be a singer, take what that means in stride and PRACTICE!!!!!

Know your words, practice to keep your chops up, keep trying to learn and be a better musician than you already are, thats what the rest of us do, so if you want to be considered equal, try working equally.

PS I know some singers that are very resposable and professional so this isnt a slam on singers in general. Just the mooks that think they can half ass it and get by and then bitch about how hard it is.

[spectorbass83]

Originally Posted by jady

I am pretty unsympathetic for singers forgeting thier words. We have 2 singers in our band one is pretty on with remembering her lyrics but the other is constantly forgetting.

Singers have such a complex about being considered equal musicians with the instrumentalists but then when thier voice is tired they feel they need special treatment (I can't sing that song now, etc) or crying about how much harder it is to sing than play anything else.

I play every song, begining to end, with no guitar solos to rest in, no instrumental breaks to rest on, etc.

bassists and drummers are playing 99% of the time the band is playing but if we ever tried to change a song in the set list order to help our chops, its like we asked to move mountains.

To all singers, suck it up!!! You chose to be a singer, take what that means in stride and PRACTICE!!!!!

Know your words, practice to keep your chops up, keep trying to learn and be a better musician than you already are, thats what the rest of us do, so if you want to be considered equal, try working equally.

PS I know some singers that are very resposable and professional so this isnt a slam on singers in general. Just the mooks that think they can half ass it and get by and then bitch about how hard it is.

Amen to that brotha!
Finally, somebody that sees it my way. Thank you!

I must say though that I am only sympathetic towards singers if they have a throat problem or infection and cannot sing. I know that you cause serious damage to your vocal chords if you go all out and sing as you normally would while you have a throat infection..if yorue sick, rest your voice...by all means

[invader3k]

A few tips you should share with the singer:

- He needs to practice between band rehearsals...at least once a week. It will probably help because he'll have less pressure being alone, than in a band setting, too. That alone will help him remember the lyrics.

- There's nothing wrong with having the words on stage, or using "cheat sheets." But...there are professional ways to do everything, and unprofessional. What he's doing right now (having a mess of paper sheets) is unprofessional. He should get a music stand, and a binder, and organize all his sheets in order with the set list. That way, he's only flipping one page every song.

- Burn a CD of all the songs you guys do, and he can listen to it whenever he has a chance (in the car, etc). Hearing the songs repeatedly will help him remember the lyrics more coherently.

[Alvaro Martín Gómez A.]

I remember that this annoyed me a lot at the moment, but I couldn't avoid to burst into laughter when later I heard the recording. We kept pulling our singer's leg for a long time.

[Lazylion]

I saw Aerosmith in South Dakota in 1993. Steven Tyler didn't have sheets of paper, he had poster boards! Right on the floor where everybody could see! I could almost read the words from my seat, like 30 rows away!
What I've done in the past on big gigs is tape my sheets to the monitor in advance, in order. Then when one is finished, just peel it off and you've got the next one all ready to go. My current band I can't do that, because we're using an in-ear monitor system. Nothing on the floor to tape anything to! So now I have a music stand.

[Techmonkey]

I never forget lyrics when I'm just singing, and never forget basslines when I'm just playing bass... but there's something lethal about mixing the two... I always end up forgetting something.

One of our songs is in drop D, and I changed the bassline the practice before a gig... Seeing as I wrote that section of the song in standard it was instinctive for me to play it in standard. I stumbled on the lyrics, which threw me off on the new bassline, so I went back to playing what I wrote originally which was in standard, and forgot completely that I was in drop D... it took me a whole verse to correct myself

It was the biggest gig we'd ever played up until then, and things went downhill after that song... we didn't get another gig for months. I felt so bad I stopped singing in the band, and we hired a proper singer. Things are going much better now - I can concentrate much more on my basslines... But one thing I'll never do is be slightly mean to my singer, no matter what he wants to do... been there, done that